ECONOMIC SNAPSHOT | HOUSTON

A “most irreplaceable” port

By:JON McCLURE | Staff Writer

TROY OXFORD | STAFF ARTIST

Posted on: April 13, 2014

On March 22, an oil slick from a struck barge effectively stoppered the narrow inlet into the Port of Houston, the busiest waterborne conduit of foreign trade in the United States, for three days. In the last decade, the Port of Houston has risen to prominence among other U.S. ports due in large part to petrochemical companies feeding off the natural gas boom in Texas. Cargo tonnage handled by the port has increased almost 25 percent in the last ﬁve years. In 2013, Colliers International, a real estate company working along the ship channel for 60 years, named the port the “Most Irreplaceable” in the U.S.

Busiest port

The Port of Houston is busiest in terms of ship calls to the port and also ranks ﬁrst in the U.S. In foreign cargo tonnage.

Jobs and taxes

According to the most recent economic assessments, the Port of Houston boasts more jobs supported directly by port operations than its largest California peers, which have faced increased tensions between employers and labor unions in recent years. The Houston port also supports $178.5 billion in overall economic activity in Texas.

Cash and carry

Steel containers ﬁlled with goods account for the majority of tonnage handled by the port as well as the majority of direct business revenue created. “Roll-on/roll-off” cargo — semi-truck trailers, railroad cars and other wheeled cargo — are the most valuable per ton.

International proﬁle

Chinese exports make up almost a quarter of container tonnage received by the port. Trade with East Asia, which increased dramatically in the last decade, will also beneﬁt greatly from a project underway to widen the Panama Canal.

The bottom line

“The widening of the Panama Canal should impact the Port of Houston on both the import and export side. Ten years ago, on the container side we didn’t have any East Asian import trade; fast forward 10 years, we have two weekly services that account for 27 percent of our overall import container volume.”

Roger Guenther, executive director at the Port of Houston Authority

“Most people compare ports in terms of container trafﬁc and we have a signiﬁcant place in the container world. But at the Port of Houston, most of the containers that leave are packed full, not empty going back to China, like most of those leaving LA or Long Beach. Houston is a real export hub of containerized cargo and an alternative to West Coast ports.”

Gary Maybray, Principal of Colliers International in Houston

“West Coast ports are facing signiﬁcant challenges in 2014 due to fractious labor disputes and stiff competition from Canadian ports, which are a day’s travel nearer to Asian traders. In contrast, the boom in natural gas production as well as improved international shipping routes have created a ‘perfect storm’ of opportunity for the Port of Houston.”